Odisha hikes bus fare

Bhubaneswar: Ahead of the private bus owners` proposed state-wide strike on Wednesday, the Odisha government on Tuesday hiked the bus fare by five paise to eight paise per kilometre.

The new bus fare will be effective from September 1, a notification issued by the commerce and transport department said.
The government hiked the bus fare after a meeting with the All Odisha Private Bus Owners Association, said Commerce and Transport Minister Ramesh Chandra Majhi.

As per the notification, the fare has been hiked by 5 to 8 paise per kilometre. While the fare of the ordinary passenger and express bus is raised by five paise, there has been increase of seven paise for deluxe buses and eight paise per kilometre for AC buses.

The passengers will now pay 64 paise per km for ordinary passenger buses, 67 paise per km for express buses, 89 paise for deluxe buses and Rs 1.08 for AC buses, the notification said.
The Association had demanded a revision of bus fares following frequent hikes in the price of diesel.

The bus owners association, however said they will take a decision whether to go for the proposed bus strike from tomorrow.